Railway journal lubricator structure



July 2, 1957 J. J. HENNESSY RAILWAY JOURNAL LUBRICATOR STRUCTURE 2 Shets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 5, 1955 M m m m July 2, 1957 J. J. HENNESSY RAILWAY JOURNAL LUBRICATOR STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 5, l955 INVENI'OR.

Unite nessy Lubricator Company, Inc., Chamhershurg, Pa, a corporation of Deiaware Application January 5, 1955, Serial No. 479,956

Claims, (Cl. 3ti8-84) The invention relates to devices for pumping lubricant from the bottom of a railway axle box to a journal upon which the box is mounted as illustrated generally in Patent No. 2,658,806, issued November 10, 1953.

Such lubricators as previously used have included a pump, a pump actuating lever, a lubricant distributor applicable to the journal and to which lubricant is supplied by the pump, and parts contacting the bottom and other walls of the box and mounting the pump, pump lever and distributor and positioning them in the box for normal operation of the pump by the play of the axle journal transversely of the box lengthwise of the journal. Under certain conditions due to variation in manufacturing tolerances and due to wear of the journal bearing and other parts, there is a reduction in the clearance between the bottom of the journal and the inside bottom wall of the box and also a reduction in the distance between the outer end of the journal and the opposing outer end wall of the box. When these conditions exist, it is difficult to insert the lubricator into the box beneath the journal and to remove the lubricator from beneath the journal and out of the box.

The main object of the present invention is to avoid this difficulty by so constructing the lubricator parts that they may be applied and removed separately and, at the same time, will be accurately assembled with each other and properly positioned within the box for operation.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating selected embodiments of the invention:

Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section through a journal box equipped with the lubricator and showing the journal, the journal bearing and wedge carried thereby, and supporting the box.

Figure 2 is a horizontal section through the box showing the journal in broken lines and the lubricator structure, including the distributor, as seen from below, in full lines, some of the parts being sectioned to better illustrate the construction. The View is taken on the line 2- -2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a detailed vertical transverse section taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 1 and showing the support of the lubricator on the journal box bottom wall.

The journal box includes a bottom wall 1, a front wall 2, a top wall 3, an inside rear wall 4, and an outside rear wall 5. The axle 6 has the usual journal 7 on which is mounted the bearing 8 and the wedge 9 which supports the journal box.

The lubricator includes a base frame having members 16 spaced transversely of the box and resting on the box bottom wall at 11 (Figure 3) and 12 (Figure l) and spaced apart at their lower ends by shaft 13 and at their upper ends by a shaft 14 slidably receiving, transversely of its length, plungers 15 connected by a cross member having lugs 16 normally thrust against lugs 17 on the top wall of the box but adapted to be moved downwardly against the thrust of springs 18 so that plungers 15 and lugs 16 may be swung outwardly of the box as indicated in dot-dash lines in Figure 1.

rates Patent Otiice 2,797,970 Patented July 2, 1957 A spring wire frame is coiled about shaft 13 and has lower portions 20 extending rearwardly to contact box inner wall 4 and limit movement of shaft 13 and frame members 10 against movement rearwardly of the box. The remainder of the wire frame forms a carrier portion extending rearwardly and upwardly as indicated at 21 and terminates in coils 22 about a pin 23, the ends of which project laterally from coils 22.

The lubricant distributor i carried by pin 23 and includes an upwardly concaved pad 24 having a stiff back 25 of sheet metal, plastic or the like. Depending from back 25 are transversely spaced guides 26, each consisting of an upright flat sheet bent to V-shape horizontally (Figure 2) with one outerleg 26b longer than the other and secured along its upper edge to the bottom of the distributor back. The shorter inner leg 26a is notched as indicated at 27 to slidably receive pin 23. Longer guide leg-26b is deeper than leg 26a and opposes the end of pin 23. Legs 26b of the two guides diverge forwardly of the distributor.

With this construction, the distributor unit may be inserted through the forward opening in the box and into the space beneath the journal and the bottom of the box and then raised into contact with the journal and moved rearwardly to the extent permitted by stop 28 contacting with the box inner wall 4. Then the lubricator wire frame 243, 21 may be inserted through the box opening and between the raised distributor and the bottom of the box and move rearwardly. During such movement, its pin 23 will be raised by the wire frame arm 21 into the space between guide arms 26b and directedby the latter into notches 27 in guide arms 26a to support the distributor against the journal.

A pump lever having an upright arm 30 and a horizontal arm 31 is fuicrumed on shaft 13. Upright arm 30 is provided with a pivoted button 32 arranged to contact the outer face of collar 7a on the journal. A horizontally disposed plate 33 has extensions 34 pivoted on shaft 13. A torsion spring 37, coiled about shaft 13, has its ends beneath plate 33 and has an intermediate loop part under lever arm 39 and thrusts the plate in an anti-clockwise direction and the lever arm 30 in a clock- Wise direction to maintain them in the relative positions shown and constitutes elements 31, 33, in effect, a single horizontal arm whichmay yield to avoid injury to these parts in the event of abnormal movement of thejournal and the box, or when the box is jacked up, to remove the bearing and wedge, and then lowered.

A U-shaped spring wire 40 has its ends coiled about shaft 13 and anchored to the shaft and extends upwardly and rearwardly fromthe shaft with its loop seated in the grooved top plate 38 in the upper end of a collapsible pump body 35, the lower end of which is attached to plate 33. When the lubricator frame and pump are in the full line position shown, spring 40 raises the upper end of the pump body into contact with the underside of the distributor and the pump top plate 38 is received in the arcuate pocket formed by a bracket 39 attached to distributor back 25.

It will be understood that the pump has an inlet valve at its lower end and an opening at its upper end for discharging lubricant through a check valve 41 in the pad. Play of the box and journal relative to each other lengthwise of the journal causes oscillation of the pump lever 30, 31 and alternate collapse and expansion of the pump body with resulting feed of lubricant to the pad.

When the lubricator frame 10, 13, 20 is removed from beneath the journal, the distributor may move forwardly until its forward end contacts the journal collar 7a and then the lubricator frame and pump may slide out from beneath the distributor without any of the parts being held or caught. After removal of the lubricator frame,

the distributor is readily dropped and removed. Obviously the structure described will permit ready insertion and removal of a lubricator into and out of the box even though the clearance between the bottom of the boxand the journal is less than would accommodate the passage to rest upon the bottom of an axle journal box, a carrier having a mounting on the frame and having a yielding portion extending upwardly from said mounting, a lubricant distributor supported from said portion and positioned thereon by respective pin and pin-receiving slotted elements, the slot in each of the elements being elongated horizontally and open at one end, and the carrier and distributor being separable by relative movement of the frame and distributor lengthwise of the lubricator to move the pin out of the slot of each of the elements, the upper face of the distributor being shaped to fit the underside of an axle journal, a pump operating lever carried on the frame and including an upright arm, positioned to be engaged by the journal, and a horizontal arm below the distributor, and a collapsible pump body mounted on the lever horizontal arm, with its upper end slidable lengthwise of the lubricator into an open end seat on the bottom of the distributor and removable from the journal box with the frame by reverse movement and independently of the distributor.

2. In a railway axle journal lubricator, a base member adapted to rest upon the bottom of an axle journal box, a member having a mounting on the base member and having a yielding carrier portion extending upwardly from and longitudinally rearwardly from said mounting and terminating in lateral projections, a lubricant distributor including a pad having an upper contour shaped for fitting against the underside of an axle journal and a backing plate for said pad, guides depending from the backing plate and diverging forwardly of the distributor and having forwardly opening recesses at their inner ends slidably receiving the projections at the rear ends of said carrier portion, a collapsible pump body supported from said base member independently of said distributor but having a discharge port leading to the distributor pad, and a pump operating lever fulcrumed on the base member and including an arm in front of the forward end of the distributor and an arm beneath the pump body.

3. In a railway axle journal lubricator, a base adapted to rest upon the bottom of an axle journal box, a support member mounted on the base and having a portion extending upwardly from and rearwardly from its mounting on the base and yielding vertically, a distributor supported from said member and shaped for application to the underside of an axle journal and having a downwardly opening port, a pump operating lever pivoted on the base and including an arm extending rearwardly from its pivot and an arm extending upwardly and facing towards the forward end of the distributor, a collapsible pump chamber mounted at its lower end on the first-mentioned lever arm and having an upwardly opening port, there being guides on the distributor slidably receiving the longitudinally rearwardly extending portions of the support member to be assembled therewith and seating the upper end of the pump chamber, after limited receptive movement, with said ports substantially aligned.

4. A railway axle journal lubricator comprising a frame adapted to rest upon the bottom of a journal box, a spring Wire anchored to and extending upwardly and rearwardly from a mounting on said frame and forming a forwardly opening loop, a pump chamber having a top part slidable horizontally to enter and engage said loop and having a flexible cylindrical side wall depending from said top part, a lubricant distributor pad supported from said frame independently of said pump chamber and readily detachable from the frame and pump by movement of the frame, spring Wire, and pump forwardly of the distributor, a bell crank lever fulcrumed on aid frame and including a substantially horizontal arm, beneath and supporting the pump chamber, and a substantially upright arm opposite to one end of the distributor pad.

5. In a railway axle journal lubricator, a frame adapted to rest upon the bottom of an axle journal box and provided with elements adapted to seat respectively against the front and rear walls of the journal box to position the frame lengthwise of the box, a carrier having a mounting 'on the frame intermediate the ends of the frame and having a yielding portion extending upwardly from and longitudinally rearwardly of said mounting, an element at the upper end of said portion extending transversely of the lubricator, a lubricant distributor having a depending part with a slot opening forwardly of the distributor and receiving said element, the distributor being supported thereby and being separable therefrom by relative movement of the frame and distributor lengthwise of the lubricator, the upper face of the lubricator being shaped to fit the underside of an axle journal, a pump operating lever carried on the frame and including an upright arm, in front of the forward end of the distributor, and a horizontal arm below the distributor, a collapsible pump body between the lever horizontal arm and the distributor with its upper end slidably contacting the bottom of the distributor and having a discharge opening leading to the distributor.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,612,416 Hennessy Sept. 30, 1952 

